The present invention is a wheel and tire structure which includes one or more resilient toroidal support components which are self-supporting toroidal frameworks of connected torsion elements: by attachment to a central hub structure as a complete wheel; or with connecting elements as a tire support structure.
Wheel structures with radial spring elements are generally referred to as "spring-wheels" in the United States classification system, being defined therein under class/subclass 152/1 as a wheel "for land vehicles whereby the vehicle is resiliently supported on the roadway by means within the wheel structure other than a resilient tire." Therefore, the present invention has elements that are covered generally by class 152, resilient tires and wheels, and may be considered under the subclasses 1-13 covering spring wheels and subclasses 516-520 covering "run-flat" devices. Among the patents covered under subclasses 1-13 is the Supporting Wheel, U.S. Pat. No. 5,353,853, which uses "S" shaped springs as the radial elements which support the central hub of the wheel. That device does not involve the use of radial elements which are toroidal, nor does it contemplate a role as a tire insert or as incorporated in the body or carcass of a tire.